State's top online K-12 school expands main campus in Baton Rouge

Dr. Lonnie Luce, Superintendent of University View Academy joined Louisiana Association of Business and Industry (LABI) Chief Executive Officer Stephen Waguespack, as well as representatives from both organizations in finalizing the sale of the long-time LABI Baton Rouge Headquarters Building to the state’s largest online charter school.

The sale, which includes the building, its furniture and audio equipment, was completed for $1.8 million. LABI is moving its headquarters closer to the State Capitol in downtown Baton Rouge. The current University View campus is comprised of about 20,000 square feet; the new building will accommodate University View Academy’s continued growth.

“We are building Louisiana‘s public school offerings for all families with a high quality, technologically advanced program and working tirelessly to make sure that any student in any area, urban or rural, has the best opportunity to learn. With this recent addition of the former LABI headquarters, our teaching staff will have access to more resources and tools to further our students’ success,” said Dr. Luce.

University View Academy is a free charter public school which operated for six years as Louisiana Connections Academy. It is now an independently managed Type 2 charter authorized by the Board of Elementary and Secondary Education (BESE) and one of the largest K-12 public schools in the state, serving up to 2300 K-12 students from any parish in the state through a completely online curriculum. University View Academy utilizes technology to advance student performance and offers an Early College Program that allows its high school graduates to earn two-years of college credit with their diploma.

“We have expanded our campus from the original Russell J. Henderson Building on Jamestown to now include the former LABI headquarters and an additional building on Bennington to accommodate our growing teaching staff,” said Dr. Luce. “Additionally, the acquisition of the LABI Headquarters comes with a state-of-the-art conference center that can be used for professional development as well as public meetings and school activities.”

Under Superintendent Luce the K-12 public online school has refocused its academic model to be one of higher student performance oriented towards technological fields and post-graduate studies. Dr. Luce is a former Superintendent of the Year.

University View Academy is headquartered at 4664 Jamestown Drive in Baton Rouge; the new building is located at 3113 Valley Creek Drive, within walking distance of the main administrative center. University View also recently purchased the building to its rear at 4715 Bennington Avenue for expanded administrative purposes and staff parking. The previous building purchases totaled about $2.5 million.
 
ABOUT UNIVERSITY VIEW ACADEMY  University View Academy, formerly operating as Louisiana Connections Academy, is the state’s leading provider of high-quality, free public online charter schooling for grades K through 12. University View allows students to learn and excel at their own pace, with individualized instruction by Louisiana certified teachers, while offering families the support and flexibility they seek to fit their lifestyles. At University View Academy, students embrace technology, flourish through innovation, and seek empowerment to become their best self. As an online charter school, students access their lessons anytime, anywhere with a computer offered by the school.